Guide · Updated September 3, 2026 · 8 min read
Audora vs. TuneCore (2026): an honest comparison
Written by Audora, with TuneCore given full credit where it earns it.
TuneCore is one of the oldest names in independent distribution. It launched in 2006, is now owned by the French music company Believe and is used by hundreds of thousands of artists. Audora is the opposite in almost every structural way: young, small, built around the release rather than the upload, and every release checked before it goes out. Depending on who you are, each of those is either a pro or a con.
Key takeaways
- TuneCore's tiered plans ($24.99–$54.99 a year as of July 2026) keep 0% of store royalties, but TuneCore takes 20% of earnings from social platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
- One monthly Audora plan covers distribution through The Orchard, the distribution network the major labels use, plus cover art, press-ready bios and promotion that publishes approved posts to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook Pages.
- TuneCore's 20% lands where short-form video royalties are paid. Audora charges no social-royalty fee on those platforms.
- TuneCore fits self-managers who want tier flexibility and splits. Audora fits artists who want the release work and the delivery handled in one place.
Audora vs. TuneCore at a glance
Prices were checked in July 2026 against TuneCore's public pricing page. Both services can change their terms at any time. Freelance rates are the market figures broken down in our cost-to-release guide.
| TuneCore | Audora | |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Self-serve, tiered annual plans | Create an account, then set up your first release |
| Social-platform royalties | 20% fee on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube earnings | No social-royalty fee |
| Store royalties | 0% commission on annual plans | We take nothing from your royalties on any plan |
| The release work (art, bios, campaign) | You arrange it: a freelance designer runs $200–$500 per cover, a press bio $100–$300 | Artwork, press copy and campaign planning come from the same plan |
| Promotion tools | Store pitching and marketing tools; no automatic social posting | Campaign planning and auto-posting to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook Pages, once you approve each post |
| Distribution route | Self-serve delivery (Believe infrastructure) | The Orchard (the majors' network) |
| Collaborator splits | Built-in royalty splits | Credits and metadata managed per release |
| What you pay | Rising Artist $24.99/yr, Breakout $44.99/yr, Professional $54.99/yr | One monthly plan covers the release and the work around it. See plans. |
| Best for | Self-managers who want tier flexibility | Artists who want each release done properly |
Where TuneCore wins
- Track record and scale. Nearly two decades of paying artists, backed by Believe's global infrastructure. That history counts for something when you're trusting someone with your royalties.
- Tier flexibility. Start on Rising Artist at $24.99 a year and move up as you need more features. There's a plan for most budgets.
- Built-in splits. Automatic royalty splitting with collaborators is mature and useful for bands and co-writes.
- Instant access. Sign up and upload today.
The 20% social-platform fee, spelled out
This is the TuneCore term most artists discover after the fact. Annual plans keep 0% of your store royalties from Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music, but TuneCore keeps 20% of earnings from social platforms: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. In 2026, short-form video is where independent music discovery happens. If a clip of your song travels on TikTok, a fifth of those royalties stay with TuneCore.
Audora charges no social-royalty fee, and Promotion does the work on that side: campaign planning, rendered short-form video and approved posts published on schedule. TikTok, YouTube, Instagram (Stories included) and Facebook Pages post automatically, and nothing goes out until you approve it. A Facebook Page post is a photo or a link, never a video. Stories carry no link sticker, so your release link goes in your bio.
Where Audora wins
- One plan for the release and the work around it. Cover art, press-ready bios, campaign planning and rendered promo videos come from the same credits that pay for distribution. TuneCore distributes, and the rest is on you.
- Promotion that posts itself. TuneCore's current tooling centers on distribution and store features. Audora drafts the campaign and you approve the posts, which then publish themselves to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook Pages on schedule.
- No social-royalty fee. We take nothing from what your music earns on short-form platforms.
- Humans on the other end. A person answers, usually within one business day, and people check what goes out.
- Distribution through The Orchard, the network the major labels use. We watch what's performing and put our best artists in front of the industry.
Already on TuneCore? Switching keeps your streams
Your stream counts and playlists follow your ISRC codes, not your distributor. Deliver the same recordings with the same ISRCs through the new distributor, wait for them to go live, then take down the old versions. Never do it the other way around. The full steps, including the overlap window, are in our switching guide.
Which should you pick?
- Pick TuneCore if: you self-manage, want tier options or pay-per-release pricing, need built-in collaborator splits, and your royalties come mostly from stores rather than social platforms.
- Pick Audora if: your growth plan runs through short-form video, you want the release work bundled instead of DIY, and people on the other end matter more to you than instant sign-up.
Questions
What is the TuneCore 20% social fee?
On TuneCore's annual plans, store royalties from Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music are paid through with 0% commission. As of July 2026, TuneCore keeps a 20% fee on royalties earned from social platforms: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. For artists whose music travels through short-form video, this is often the largest cost of the service.
What does a release cost to do properly, TuneCore vs. Audora?
Price the whole job, not just the upload. TuneCore's tiers ($24.99–$54.99 a year as of July 2026) cover delivery to the stores. The cover art, the press bio and the campaign are bought separately (a freelance designer runs $200–$500 per cover, a press bio $100–$300) or done by you at midnight. On Audora, one monthly plan covers the release, the artwork, the bios and the promotion work, with no 20% social-royalty fee. TuneCore's tiers can be cheaper for high-volume uploaders who need none of that work done for them.
Does TuneCore have social media promotion tools?
TuneCore's current tooling focuses on distribution and store features rather than automatic social posting. Promotion on Audora plans campaigns and publishes approved posts on schedule. TikTok, YouTube, Instagram (Stories included) and Facebook Pages post automatically, and nothing goes out until you approve it. A Facebook Page post is a photo or a link, never a video. Stories carry no link sticker, so your release link goes in your bio.
Who owns TuneCore?
TuneCore is owned by Believe, a French digital music company, which acquired it in 2015. Audora is independent. Distribution runs through The Orchard, but that is a delivery route, not an ownership relationship or a record deal.
Can I move from TuneCore to Audora without losing my streams?
Yes. Streams follow your ISRC codes, not your distributor. Redeliver the same recordings with the same ISRCs, wait until the new versions are live, then request takedowns from TuneCore. Done in that order, stream counts and playlist placements carry over.
Does Audora take a commission on royalties?
No. Audora's revenue is the monthly plan. We take nothing from your royalties on any plan. If you cancel and we keep your music distributed, we recover only our distribution costs from what it earns. Everything above that is still paid to you.